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Natural hazards · Whittemore

Whittemore, IA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Whittemore comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. 7 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations
Expected damage

How exposed is Whittemore?

38
Low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Whittemore to be higher than in 38% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding31%Drought25%Cold waves19%Tornadoes15%Everything else9%
By hazard

What Whittemore faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

31% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 40% of U.S. places
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Drought

25% of expected damage
Recorded about 17 times a year in the area

Cold waves

19% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. places
Recorded about 12 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Flood insurance claims

Does Whittemore flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Whittemore.

of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Whittemore isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Kossuth County.
Disasters that hit Whittemore

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Whittemore itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of Whittemore.

Brought FEMA money into WhittemoreDeclared for Kossuth County only
2019

Severe Storms and Flooding

$6K to the City of Whittemore for repairs
2018

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$9K to the City of Whittemore for repairs
2014

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

$9K to the City of Whittemore for repairs
2010

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

7 households applied for aid $5K aid approved
2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

17 households applied for aid $38K aid approved
2007

Snow

$3K to the City of Whittemore for repairs
2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

1 household applied for aid
Kossuth County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.
Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Whittemore is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Whittemore’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Whittemore. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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